Business conditions have been so weak the past few years that it's easy to forget how different things are from what they were a mere 10 years ago. However, we're beginning to get results from the 2010 decennial census, which demonstrates that our customer base has changed significantly during the past decade, even if the past four years dampened the dramatic upheaval we saw during the first six years of the decade. The U.S. population grew almost 10 percent between 2000 and 2010. It was the slowest pace of growth of any decade during the past century except for the 1930s. Still, we have 27.3 million more consumers in our economy than we had in 2000, and this census gives us a lot of information about who they are. Knowing more about these potential customers can only help us reach them more efficiently.

Most of the growth was in the Sunbelt regions. All of the eight states that will see an increase in Congressional seats are in the South and West. Except for Louisiana, which still has not gotten back the population lost after Hurricane Katrina, all of the 10 states that will lose Congressional seats are in the Northeast and Midwest. So, while the national population grew by just under 10 percent this past decade, five states saw their population increase by 20 percent or more: Nevada (35.1 percent); Arizona (24.6 percent); Utah (23.8 percent); Idaho (21.1 percent); and Texas (20.6 percent). Only one state — Michigan — lost population, but three others (Rhode Island, Louisiana and Ohio) saw gains of 2 percent or less. The five states with the largest populations in 2010 — California, Texas, New York, Florida and Illinois — now account for almost 37 percent of our national population, but also for more than 41 percent of the increase between 2000 and 2010.

The majority of our population lives in metropolitan areas, and these areas grew faster than the national average during the past decade. Still, some of the largest metropolitan areas saw below average growth. New York, Los Angeles and Chicago — the three largest metro areas in the country — each recorded population growth of 4 percent or less this past decade. Three of the top 10 nationally — Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, and Atlanta — recorded growth of 20 percent or more last decade, while two others — Washington D.C. and Miami — grew somewhat faster that the national average.

One of the main reasons that population growth has been concentrated in the Sunbelt states is that these areas have attracted most of the immigrants to the U.S., and immigrants have accounted for a large share of the population growth. Persons of Hispanic/Latino origin accounted for 16.3 percent of our population in 2010, but 43 percent of the population increase between 2000 and 2010. Racially, whites accounted for only 44 percent of the population growth during the past decade, with other races accounting for the remaining 56 percent. Asians represented more than 16 percent of the population growth, as the Asian population grew over 43 percent.

Given the strong growth of minorities in recent years, and that these populations are heavily concentrated in a few states, there are a growing number of states where minorities (persons who reported their ethnicity and race as something other than non-Hispanic white) now account for a majority of the population. These "majority minoritybCrLf states include Hawaii (77.3 percent minority), California (59.9 percent), New Mexico (59.5 percent), and Texas (54.7 percent). By the time of the next decennial census, the entire West region of the country, which currently is more than 47 percent minority, is likely to be majority minority.

How do minority households make their housing and home improvement choices? Who influences their floor covering decisions? Where do they get product information? Getting answers to these questions needs be at the top of our to-do list if we are to thrive during the next few years.____________________________________Kermit Baker is the senior research fellow for the Joint Center of Housing Studies at Harvard University. He may be reached via e-mail at kermit_baker@harvard.edu